The luckiest couple in Pelican Town
by T1meslayer
Summary: After a year in Stardew Valley, The Farmer decides it's time to propose to his blue-haired girlfriend. In essence this story is an adaptation of multiple in-game events with more of a cinematic feel. The Farmer is based off my file, but I tried to be vague for audience self-insertion if desired. Rated 'T' for implications of sexual activity that are not depicted in-text.


The Farmer bursts into Robin and Demetrius' home at the base of the mountain, dragging a lumpy burlap sack along the floor as he brushed a few pink petals from the warm spring breeze outside off his shoulders. He leaves the sack by the door, bringing a smile to the auburn-haired carpenter behind the counter as she hears the familiar sound of raw wood logs clattering as the amorphous container settles.

"So I take it you have a job for me this morning?" Robin folds her hands eagerly under her chin.

"Yeah." The Farmer nods as he steps up to the counter. He notices Robin's husband looking over from his lab across the hall, clearly intrigued by the prospect of a well-paying job. The two men greet each other with a single hand raised before The Farmer looks back to the shopkeeper.

"Not too long ago we talked about another expansion to the house," he clears his throat and sets his straw hat aside on the counter so he can run a hand through the messy black locks underneath. "I think it's about time we get working on it."

"Perfect! I would be happy to."

Robin's smile widens as she turns to the side and kneels to start rummaging around under the counter. The Farmer starts to adjust his brown, light jacket to cover more of his grey t-shirt in the meantime. More than a year after coming to Stardew Valley, he was plenty easy to recognize in those dirt-spackled jacket and jeans despite the initial murmurings from different residents of Pelican Town that he would die out in the fields without a new wardrobe.

When the carpenter comes back up she slams a handful of open blueprints down, practically making The Farmer fall back. Instead he leans in and starts to scan across the various designs.

"It's been a while, so let's go over your options again," Robin begins with a much more authoritative tone as she spreads the blueprints around. "For this new wing we can go in a few directions. Do you want some sort of man cave? Abigail told Sebastian that you're pretty good with a joystick."

The Farmer smirks but shakes his head.

"Okay, well perhaps you're looking for something more practical. Would you like a reading room with large windows to look out at the world? Or how about a small home gym? Equipment not provided, of course. Do you need extra storage space for all that wheat you like to pump out during the summer? I can—"

Robin's seemingly endless paper shuffling is abruptly stopped as The Farmer rests his hand on a blueprint that he'd been searching for. He slides the page across the counter and picks it up, examining the different sized beds across the center.

He clears his throat again and speaks up more hoarse than before, drawing a curious look from the carpenter.

"How about this? I remember you mentioning this nursery before."

When he hands the blueprint back to Robin, she scans his face with a blank expression. However, soon enough her lips curl into a mischievous smile as she sets the paper down and leans in. Her elbows rest on the counter so she can prop up her head as a laser-focused gaze causes The Farmer to duck his head.

"Interesting choice…" She trails off and punctuates the feigned, teasing ignorance in her voice with a click of her tongue. "Just what might you be planning to do with something like that? You still live on your own out there don't you?"

The Farmer's tanned cheeks run red, which only makes Robin's grin widen as he starts to confirm her suspicions.

"I don't think that's any of your business, Robin."

"Oh, but it is! I'm adding gossip to your bill this time around. Won't start working until I get it."

After a deep breath, The Farmer digs through his pocket and pulls out a spiraling blue conch shell on a blue-green string. He gently rests it next to the straw hat and gives the shopkeeper a moment to ogle.

"I was at the beach during that thunderstorm last week. Some old mariner came up out of nowhere, said he'd seen the sparkle in my eyes before and offered to sell me—"

"So it is a Mermaid's Pendant!" Robin practically squeals as she picks the shell up and holds it toward the light. "You dog! This is for Emily, isn't it?"

The Farmer opens his mouth to respond, but doesn't get the chance to respond before Demetrius speaks up.

"My man!" He roughly pats The Farmer's back, causing him to stumble forward before looking over his shoulder. He wasn't sure how the large black scientist managed to sneak over unheard, but that didn't seem to matter as he seamlessly slipped into banter with his wife.

"So when are you going to pop the question?" Robin asks as she hands the shell over to Demetrius. The Farmer watches apprehensively, afraid of seeing it break.

"This is a nice specimen. Haven't seen a Pendant since I proposed to Robin."

"Ours is still hanging up in the bedroom, though it's a bit worn down by now." The carpenter steps out from behind the counter and joins her husband. When they stood together, the complimentary blue of his dressy shirt and the orange of her puffy vest made their strong union that much more clear.

"You might not want to hold onto it for too long, in case something happens." Demetrius looks toward The Farmer, who had given up on responding between the couple's dialogue. "The end of spring, maybe summer… Those would be best."

"Definitely. So, what are you thinking then?"

"Yeah don't leave us hanging."

As both figures stare into his soul, The Farmer simply looks between them in a stunned silence. He'd almost never seen them so excited together about anything and it was jarring. The couple starts to pick up on the awkwardly one-sided energy as he reaches out with both hands cupped while looking at the Pendant.

"Oh, right. My bad." Demetrius carefully drops the object by its string into The Farmer's hands, and he pulls it close to his chest with a sigh.

"I'm going to give it to her soon… I'm just nervous, you know?" He looks between the two and shrugs. Robin gives him a knowing smile back and nods, followed soon by Demetrius.

"Sure. We all are," the scientist begins as he slips his hands into his pockets. "But you've got nothing to be nervous about."

"Yeah, that girl's head over heels for you Farmer Boy." Robin continues as she leans slightly into her husband's side.

"You think so?" The Farmer knew so, but even the small affirmation made his posture straighten slightly. It was clear he needed the confidence boost, and Robin looked more than eager to provide it.

"I was getting a drink at the Saloon yesterday and overheard Emily talking to Gus. She sounded dejected about the fact that you hadn't swung by in a week."

"I-It's not like that!" He cuts in, a bit more frantic to the surprise of the couple. "After I got this I needed a little time to get ready. Finish a harvest or two so I could afford this expansion, clean the house. If she's going to move in with me I can't just let her walk into a pigsty!"

"Whoa there, relax Cowboy." Demetrius chuckles as he reaches out and rests a comforting hand on The Farmer's shoulder. "First off, she would literally be walking into a pigsty eventually if she moved onto your farm."

He pauses to laugh at his own joke, which brings a snicker out of Robin as well. The Farmer gives the scientist a bit of a grave stare, so he continues.

"Second, I don't think that's what Robin's trying to say here."

"Maybe if you'd let me finish…" Robin trails off again and gives The Farmer a look of anticipation. When he gestures for her to go on, she smiles. "I'm sure she'll be ecstatic to find out this is why you've been MIA."

The Farmer takes a deep breath through his nose again. He sighs the breath out of his mouth.

"Okay. If you guys think so, I'll ask her soon."

Demetrius grins as Robin skips forward and pulls The Farmer into a hug.

"That's great! Congratulations!" She remarks with a shrill laugh before backing off and going to grab the sack of wood he brought along. "I'll get working on this right away so it can be ready for your big day."

As The Farmer moves to put his hat back on, Demetrius steps up and holds his arm out. He takes the hint and does the same so they can loudly clasp their hands together like a less buff Arnold Schwarzenegger and Carl Weathers.

"Proud of you. Emily's the luckiest girl in Pelican Town." Demetrius pauses when he catches Robin's dirty look as she drags the wood out of that main office. "Well… You know."

"Yeah, I do know. Thanks Demetrius." He offers the husband a warm smile.

"My pleasure, I'm a huge proponent of marriage. It has to be a good thing, Robin did it twice after all."

"I heard that!" She calls from down the hall. Demetrius and The Farmer laugh.

* * *

When The Farmer took up his grandfather's offer to escape his soul-crushing city life and take over a farm in the remote corner of Stardew Valley over a year ago, Emily had been one of the first people that caught his attention.

He spent the first week or so introducing himself to all the townsfolk, but for the most part he was primarily introducing himself to the scenery. After a lifetime constrained in the concrete jungle, it was jarring to find himself in a practical Garden of Eden. If the lush, vibrant greens and pink-topped, pollen-spewing spring trees weren't giving him enough sensory overload, the quaint cottages painted in a rainbow of colors scattered throughout Pelican Town certainly were.

Some less than cordial new neighbors were the only things that could briefly interrupted his awe while meandering through the new environment.

The blonde, fashion-forward Haley didn't bother to say sorry when they collided on the cobblestone pathway outside of Pierre's General Store, instead choosing to berate the poor "filthy" newcomer for getting dirt on her shoes. He had only just started to clear out the overgrown foliage around that abandoned farmland he inherited and didn't realize he should brush away the Charles Schulz-style dust cloud around his figure before heading into town.

Shane — with his seemingly perpetual thousand-yard stare, five-o-clock shadow and alcohol breath — was just as quick to berate the new resident for even thinking about starting a conversation with him while walking to his 9:00 a.m. shift at JojaMart. But as The Farmer would inevitably find out, Shane didn't take a kind demeanor to anything but beer, chickens and his Goddaughter Jas.

Then there was George, the old, almost bald and wheelchair-bound man whose distaste for nearly everything about the world was only bafflingly matched by his long-time wife Evelyn's ability to still put up with the crotchety attitude after so many years. All you really need to know to understand The Farmer's first impression of the man was that he scolded the town's shy bookworm Penny for helping him reach a letter in the back of his mailbox. To be fair though, that was just one of the few times he'd ever seen the old man leave his house… Ever. And George seemed appreciative when he brought over an anchovy months later.

Almost everyone else seemed happy to greet him, and The Farmer was happy to get to know him or her back. But something about Emily immediately drew his attention when he first saw her heading toward The Stardrop Saloon.

It was her hair.

From behind, Emily looked like she had a blueberry for a head, and that stood out wildly against her token red dress. Even though plenty of Pelican Town's residents had multicolored hair, from Caroline's emerald green to Abigail and Jas' purple, Emily truly drew a person's eye.

The Farmer introduced himself to her during that first week with a bit more interest in finding out what her deal was, but their interactions that spring were rather basic. They would say hi and exchange a few pleasantries, but that was all.

He hedged his bets and asked if she wanted to dance with him during the town's annual Spring Festival, but she politely declined having already accepted an invitation from Shane.

To be fair, nobody had said yes to him that afternoon. He had only been in town for three weeks or so, why would they?

Not long after that Festival, they started to talk a bit more actively.

The Farmer was sitting in the Saloon on a quiet Tuesday night, toying with a chunk of amethyst he had recently unearthed from the mines just north of Robin and Demetrius' home. Emily was working her nightly shift and gasped as she saw the stone when coming to collect his plate.

"Amethysts are such a beautiful gemstone, aren't they?" He would look up to see her offering a pearly smile that almost imperceptibly caused his heart to skip.

Naturally, he smiled back.

"They are. It's my birthstone, actually, so I was pretty happy to find a piece."

Emily clapped her hands together and seemed to hop up-and-down on her toes when she heard that.

"We must be kindred spirits then," she remarked before settling down as she caught her boss giving her a dirty look for being THAT unprofessional. "It's my favorite gem, but we so rarely see them around the Valley."

He didn't hesitate to reach out and offer her the sparkling stone that reflected a purple light against his still rather pale, not-quite-calloused hand. Though she briefly feigned disinterest for the sake of social norms, the amethyst was quickly snatched away before he could finish insisting.

"This gift is fabulous! Thank you so much!"

It was like some kind of abstract friendship meter ticked up that night, as Emily took advantage of the slow shift to hang around The Farmer's side of the counter to chat. Among other things, he found out that she had a passion for sewing and making her own clothes. At one point he made an off-handed joke about being worried to wear something as vibrant as her hair, and she immediately assured him that it would stand out perfectly against his skin tone.

She must have taken that idea to heart, because a few days later he received a blueberry-colored neckerchief in the mail.

He wore that piece of fabric every day after, both because it made for an easy cloth to wipe his brow during a hot afternoon watering crops and because it reminded him of the first new friend he made in Pelican Town.

Days and weeks went by as The Farmer slowly grew his operation enough to make a decent living, while at the same time taking on odd-jobs from the town's request board to help make friends and exploring the mines to see what treasures were hiding behind the near-endless wave of slimes.

He continued to bring Emily amethysts whenever he dug one up, finding that his day got a little brighter seeing her appreciate the gesture. Soon enough he would see her showing off different pieces of jewelry made out of the stuff, much to the chagrin of Abigail (who shared Emily's passion for the purple gems) and the confusion of her sister Haley (who could never seem to remember the name of that weird Farmer Boy).

The Farmer didn't make a strong effort to get to know Haley after she had been so consistently rude to him during his first few weeks in Pelican Town, but inevitably his growing rapport with Emily would butt heads with his slight distain toward the blonde. Luckily he was able to break the ice more handily one day when visiting the sisters' shared home at 2 Willow Lane.

He walked into the middle of an argument about Haley's negligence toward chores Emily had asked her to do. Simple things like cleaning under couch cushions. As The Farmer had learned during one of his chats with Emily, they were looking after their parent's family home while the two were off doing who knows what for who knows how long. She constantly bemoaned the space being too big for just the two sisters, as much as she loved the energy of the space.

When asked to intervene, The Farmer somehow managed to tiptoe around an interpersonal minefield. He appeased Emily by convincing Haley to help out more while earning a little respect from the blonde for his argumentation skills in the process.

From then on he slowly grew closer to Haley as well, but whenever he went to 2 Willow Lane thereafter it was clear she was just the cordially greeted afterthought.

The Farmer visited and spoke to Emily more often than anyone else, as he found himself growing more and more interested in her oddities. She was a devout lover of animals, as evidenced by the way she rescued a parrot that crashed into her window one summer afternoon. Yet she loved the animal so much that she refused to give it a name "out of respect for the bird's autonomy."

She meditated every morning before working on whatever sewing project she was in the middle of, and had no qualms talking about her deep spirituality. Not quite a religious spirituality, as he'd find other townsfolk like the recently jobless Pam were devout followers of Yoba. It was a spirituality that, frankly, The Farmer still had some trouble wrapping his head completely around. She believed in the power of energy that every object exuded and often looked to some gemstone or crystal to give her the positivity she needed for another long night of work.

One day she even told him about a bizarre dream she had soon after he came to Stardew Valley. A dream where the purple pyramid in her Kandinsky dreamscape, with palm trees that had bark carved to look like stacked duck heads surrounding her, was breeched by an apparition that looked exactly like him.

Any normal person probably would have run away hearing that.

But The Farmer was simply more intrigued. Nobody he knew back in the city would ever admit to be into such bizarre things, because they were either too robotic and focused on their mundane jobs or too afraid of how something like that might affect their social status. He adored seeing someone be so open about themselves.

Seasons passed.

The Farmer learned about Emily's quiet interest in dancing and clothing therapy. He met her best friend Sandy in the Calico Desert after helping restore Pam's old bus so she could work again and found out just how often Emily wrote to the desert dweller about "that new Farm Boy."

Their frequent meetings were peppered with special occasions. Sharing a mediocre soup the town had made at that year's summer Luau, exploring the Spirit's Eve spooky maze and wandering the winter Night Market.

It was during that Night Market, when a traveling caravan of seafaring folk docked in Pelican Town to offer exotic goods under strings of moody fairy lights, that The Farmer made up his mind. The first night of the three-day event, he spent hours listening to her excitedly point out every aesthetic detail on every boat. From the sparkling, amethyst-colored fishing vessel to the tucked-away home of the famous Mermaid Show — oddly enough an experience The Farmer found as entrancing as Emily's strange style of dance. Perhaps she'd learned a thing or two from the mermaids?

Either way, the two had all but held hands as they wandered the market. Within a few days he bought a bouquet of roses from Pierre and asked her to go steady with him.

She snorted at how goofy and formal he was about it, but gladly accepted.

By the Feast of the Winter Star, about a week after the Night Market, they stood together under the town square's large Christmas tree and exchanged gifts — even though Shane had been The Farmer's secret gift-recipient.

Of course he gave her an amethyst. By then it was more like a running joke between the two, but she still loved the boost of positive energy.

When spring cycled back to celebrate his one-year anniversary in Pelican Town, The Farmer felt he had done his grandfather proud. The old farm was automated and thriving, and every morning he was able to ship off jars of mayonnaise and blocks of cheese that the townsfolk savored. His cows and chickens were almost as well loved as Marnie's, and if you asked him she shouldn't count.

Of course her animals were the best. She owned the ranch that provided animals to everyone in the Valley!

One morning he received a letter from Emily, asking to meet in the secret woods beyond the Wizard's Tower for a bit of camping.

Her purple tent was easy to find thanks to the glow of the campfire she had already lit by the time he arrived. The moon was full that night and somehow still shined through the thick canopy of foliage deep in the woods. A chilly spring breeze, the remnants of a long, snowy winter that had since passed, kept the two huddled close on that fallen log bench beside the fire. It was a night that Emily and The Farmer would never forget.

Mostly because of the bear.

While the two were lost in each other's embrace, mumbling spine-tingling sweet nothings between smooches under the straw hat The Farmer inexplicable decided to wear on their date night, a large brown bear strolled out from the tree line and started to prod at their tent with its nose.

Emily caught sight of the ursine beast first and jumped to her feet with a breathless squeal. The Farmer leapt in front of her, right hand hovering over his sword as she looked over his shoulder and clasps both hands intertwined his free left digits.

As the bear starts to meander away from the tent toward their fire, the young couple runs into the relative safety of their purple covering. Ostensibly the bear could have torn through the fabric and had a nice pair of burgers still in their packaging, but there was something to be said about the psychological comfort of being able to huddle together in an enclosed space and shiver the fear away.

Plus the bear got bored and left soon after, so they were in no real danger.

"My sleeping bag is still outside. But there's no way I'm going back out there," Emily said to eventually break the silence of chirping grasshoppers and rustling trees. "I guess… We'll just have to share?"

At first The Farmer looked a bit unsure as he stared deep into her red-brown eyes, trying to gauge just how serious she was.

The enthusiastic grin he got in return was more than enough for him to lean in and kiss her again, wrapping his arms around her shoulders as she ran her fingers through his hair — knocking his stupid straw hat off in the process.

That was the first night they were intimate together.

He found a letter in his mailbox the next morning:

"_Thanks for joining me last night… I had a great time. I'm actually glad that bear showed up!_

_See you soon_

_Love, Emily"_

Just a few days later, a strangely ethereal-looking fisherman approached The Farmer out on a rainy beach and told him there was a certain recognizable sparkle in his eyes.

* * *

Robin finished the new expansion on The Farmer's home in record time and even offered to help rearrange the furniture given there were two new rooms to decorate.

He would regret the decision to accept her help as soon as she started asking a trillion questions, but the arrangement went so much faster that he wound up paying the carpenter extra for her annoyance. It was worthwhile as he got a little extra encouragement while preparing to pop the question.

The very next morning he found himself pacing outside of 2 Willow Lane before 9:00 a.m., trying to rehearse some cheesy speech that went nowhere as he kept glancing back at the frowning sun décor above the sisters' door. It was like staring at the face of rejection, and that kept psyching him out.

Eventually he gave up on the idea of being too prepared and simply knocks on their door before letting himself in.

It was a small community, so people were pretty lax about that sort of thing.

As he wanders inside, his eyes dart around their living room and focus on the red couch and large bookshelf he often saw Emily reading from. His ears perk up at the sounds of grunting coming out of the kitchen.

When he investigates the sound, he'd find Haley struggling to open a jar as she cursed idly under her breath.

"Need some help?" He softly speaks up after a moment of watching with mild amusement, causing the girl to gasp and almost drop her container.

"Yeesh… Make a little more noise next time, Farm Boy. Maybe call first or something?" Haley rests the jar on the kitchen counter as her other hand covers her quick-beating heart.

Though he initially hated her aggressive — some might say bitchy — personality, The Farmer had come to like the girl better over time. She was certainly the blonde, high school-popular queen bee stereotype one would expect upon first impression. She loved fashion magazines, mall shopping, skater bois and all of that cliché junk without a hint of irony. Her usual wardrobe appeared tailor-made (probably by her sister) for nights out on in the club that she would never get in sleepy Pelican Town. More often than not, she also scorned things that she deemed 'unpopular' or disruptive to her Prom-ready, Instagram-scrubbed world.

But, and I promise there is a 'but,' the more The Farmer got to know her, the more he was convinced her dismissive, status-dependent sensibilities were a result of her parents' absenteeism leaving behind a longing to be liked. When her guard was down, it was easier to work out that she had a genuine interest in photography (so much so that a dark room was built into her bedroom closet) and sitting around in bed eating an entire pink cake with a fork.

She and Emily may have butt heads in front of The Farmer, but more often he saw how much they cared for each other.

Despite agreeing with Haley's occasional disbelief about the sisters being related.

"But yes… I will take your help, if you're offering it." She scoffs and brushes her hair out of her face before handing the jar over.

The Farmer takes it and holds the cold glass to his stomach while straining to make the cover budge. The blonde, who seemed happy to know someone else was struggling in her steed, met his aggravated grunts with a smirk.

Then the jar lid pops loud enough to echo throughout the house.

"Oh!" Haley cries out in surprise as she leans back with a cyan blue set of nails held over her mouth.

The Farmer takes a second to look inside the jar: Full of a chocolate/hazelnut spread, yet untouched by man and thus exhibiting an almost heavenly spiraling swirl just under the lid.

He smiles and rests the lid on top again before handing it back. "Here you are. One fresh jar of happiness, no waiting."

"Thank you, good sir." Haley chuckles softly as she takes the spread and grabs a loose spoon from the nearby kitchen drawer with her other hand. "You're stronger than you look."

"Well, that's what tilling soil and chopping trees for a year will do to you." He shrugs, and the casual nature draws a curiously raised eyebrow from the blonde. She seems to notice something was up while scanning up and down his figure.

"Guess so," she remarks without letting on to what she was thinking. Then she starts to head off to her room with a shrug. "Tell Emily I said 'hey.'"

"Can do." The Farmer pretends to tip the hat he left behind, and then continues through the kitchen to Emily's room.

As soon as he enters, her parrot squawks and draws the blue-haired girl's attention away from her sewing machine. She stops the device and stands up with a brief stretch that cracks her arm joints.

"I'm disappointed in you. Personally, I would have been happy listening to her struggle all morning." Emily offers a cheeky grin, and The Farmer reciprocates.

"Yeah well I'll leave the sibling rivalry stuff to you, Em." They meet halfway around her fabric table in the middle of the room and hug.

It lingers, and The Farmer rubs her back lightly while looking to the starlit desert painting that broke up the room's bubbly pink wallpaper just over her shoulder.

"How's your morning been?" He asks when they finally split so she can go back to her work.

"Good, actually! I picked up a lot of positive vibes during my morning meditation. Bodes well for the day, you know?"

"Yeah… I do know." The Farmer clears his throat, briefly glancing to the parrot as he relaxes.

"Hopefully my chores won't take too long. I'd like to go buy some extra cloth from Pierre's before Gus needs me in tonight."

"Why not ask Haley to do more?"

Emily snorts and shakes her head while starting to cut one of her few remaining pieces of sapphire fabric into small squares.

"Please… You were a master class negotiator getting her to clean the couch out once a week, but it would take a true savant to get her doing more."

"Well I think it's worth trying." He shrugs while sidestepping the table to sit on the edge of her bed. "One day she'll have to do more on her own."

"Yeah, 'one day.'" Emily laughs. "She'll hold you to that you know. She can do everything, but doesn't have to now so why bother."

"I don't know… I think it's about time she start bothering." His voice was low as he idly kicked his legs.

Emily stops what she was doing and gives The Farmer an inquisitive look. "Honestly, I'm fine with doing the chores. It's not a battle you have to fight, and if it was you'd be offering your opponent a little too much credit."

Though Emily smirks again at her comment, The Farmer keeps a serious expression as his eyes dart along every inch of her expression. Her bright smile, her loose and short blue hair, her shining red eyes… The longer he looked, the more he knew it was now or never.

The girl's expression falls to concern again as he pushes against his jeans to stand up off the bed, grunting softly in the process.

"What? Did I say something?" Emily asks, leaning back as she went on the defensive.

"You're fine," The Farmer remarks before clearing his throat. He steps toward her and starts to rummage around in his jacket pocket. "I just don't think the problem is me overestimating Haley. It's you underestimating yourself."

Emily was clearly lost, and he starts to scold himself. "Huh?"

He shakes his head for her to disregard the comment before slowly kneeling in front of her.

"I think Haley should do a little more work around the house here. Because…" He pulls the Mermaid's Pendant out and dangles the shell on its string in front of her. "If you'd have me… I would love to take you back to the farm. Forever."

Emily's eyes widened as soon as she saw the blue shell. Everyone in Pelican Town knew what it represented.

First she starts to shutter uncontrollably. Then she squeals so loudly that Jodi next door was probably looking through the wall. It was a brief, stilted cry before she covers her mouth with both hands and lets her eyes flutter around to avoid getting too wet.

The Farmer got nervous. He stayed on his knee, but wasn't sure if he should speak up or just wait for an answer.

Luckily he didn't have to wait too long.

"…! I accept!" She yells, voice slightly horse as if on the verge of crying.

He quickly stands up; grinning ecstatically as she stumbles forward and practically tackles him back onto the bed with her tight hug.

"I love you," is all he can think to mutter in her ear as she lets out a few happy sobs into his shoulder.

It's a solid three minutes before they pull apart again. He starts to pull the pendant around her neck as she sniffles back the rest of her emotions.

"… I'll set everything up. We'll have the ceremony soon." She looks down and starts to paw at the shell around her neck while thinking it over.

Suddenly her eyes flash with inspiration as she looks back up to him.

"Oh! I know! How about we get married the morning of the Spring Festival! We'll never forget the date, and the whole town can be there for our first dance." She was bouncing up-and-down on her toes, hands clutched eagerly over her chest.

"That sounds perfect, Em. We can make up for you turning me down last year."

The Farmer grins, and is met by a canned laughter that barely masks the genuine pleasure she got out of the joke.

"Like coming full circle. You're right. It's perfect."

They embrace again and kiss as Emily holds him close with a hand tangled in his hair. She was slightly shorter than her new fiancée and had to hike up on her toes for the perfect angle.

"Can you believe we're about to move-in together?" She mumbles against his lips before peppering the occasional kiss between her words. "I've never lived with anyone but my family. It's… Exciting."

As if on cue, Emily's door creaks open so Haley's inquisitive eyes can look upon the embracing couple.

"Oh good… Glad to see you two are all lovey-dovey, I thought I'd find a knife in Emily's chest the way she yelled."

Without a word, Emily pulls away and shows off the new accessory around her neck. It was Haley's turn to squeal as she covers her mouth in nearly the exact same way as her sister.

"Congratulations!" She yells out while running into the room so she could tackle-hug the blue-haired girl. They embrace for a long time as well, leaving The Farmer standing back with a smile.

"I'm so jealous. You'll be set for life with the true love of a farmhand." She continues with a more teasing tone.

"Hush!" Emily responds with a goofy grin as she playfully hits Haley's shoulder.

Suddenly her expression changes to shock as she looks at a clock above her door.

"Oh man… The Festival is three days from now…" She tugs at Haley's sleeve before starting to scamper out of the room. "Come on, you have to plan this with me!"

"Um. Yes! Why didn't you ask sooner?" Haley starts to follow, but pauses and turns to The Farmer.

She takes a moment to give him a tight hug as well, one that he happily reciprocates.

"Thank you… For making her so happy."

The Farmer laughs. "Of course, she's the best thing that I found coming here."

Pleased with that response, Haley turns to run after her sister again. They leave The Farmer alone in Emily's room. It takes all of his strength not to fall over with bliss. Instead, he somehow manages to saunter up to the squawking parrot next to that desert painting.

"Can you believe we're about to move-in together?" He asks the bird while lightly petting its plumage.

Rummaging through his pocket again, he pulls out a small purple rock and leaves it in the middle of Emily's sewing table.

"I'm the luckiest guy in Pelican Town. That's for sure."


End file.
